{"id":30915,"date":"2023-10-29T19:58:14","date_gmt":"2023-10-30T01:58:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/boebert-touts-work-to-gop-voters-in-sw-colorado-but-theater-scandal-resurfaces\/"},"modified":"2026-03-31T01:30:00","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T07:30:00","slug":"boebert-touts-work-to-gop-voters-in-sw-colorado-but-theater-scandal-resurfaces","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/boebert-touts-work-to-gop-voters-in-sw-colorado-but-theater-scandal-resurfaces\/","title":{"rendered":"Boebert touts work to GOP voters in SW Colorado, but theater scandal resurfaces"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\"Rep.
Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., speaks Saturday during the Montezuma County Lincoln Day Dinner at the Ute Mountain Casino in Towaoc. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)<\/span>Jerry McBride<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Midway through a largely celebratory speech at the Montezuma County Republican Central Committee\u2019s Lincoln Day Dinner on Saturday, Rep. Lauren Boebert turned serious and reflective.<\/p>\n

After spending seven minutes largely selling the importance of her work at the U.S. Capitol and her part in building a bright conservative future under new House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), Boebert addressed the smoldering scandal<\/a> from her night at the Buell Theatre.<\/p>\n

In September, the Republican congresswoman from Colorado\u2019s 3rd District was forced to leave the Denver theater during a family-friendly performance of the musical \u201cBeetlejuice\u201d because of inappropriate behavior with a male companion. The incident, which was caught on film, quickly dominated news headlines across the country.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen it comes to a personal night out, I hope that you accept my heartfelt apology,\u201d Boebert told attendees at the event held at the Ute Mountain Casino in Towaoc. \u201cEverything that I do, I want to show you honor, because that\u2019s what you deserve. And I\u2019m so grateful for the mercy and grace that you have all shown me.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Boebert\u2019s apology drew applause from the audience, the incident is shaping up to be a potential roadblock in her attempt to be a part of the conservative future she touted to voters at the event.<\/p>\n

\"U.S.
U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., holds her grandson, Josiah Boebert, 6 months, before speaking at the Montezuma County Lincoln Day Dinner at the Ute Mountain Casino Hotel. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)<\/span>Jerry McBride<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>
\u2018You can\u2019t win elections with that kind of gap\u2019<\/div>\n

After a razor-thin loss in the 2022 election, Democrats now think they can take over Colorado\u2019s 3rd congressional district in the 2024 cycle. And with over a year still to go until voters cast their ballots, the race promises to be one for the record books.<\/p>\n

Democrat Adam Frisch of Aspen, who is expected to face Boebert again in the general election, recently reported a blockbuster quarterly fundraising haul<\/a>. Frisch now has $4.3 million on hand, much more than the $1.4 million in Boebert\u2019s campaign war chest.<\/p>\n

Flipping what has been a solid Republican seat could have significant national ramifications, potentially helping Democrats retake control of the House of Representatives. But it also would be a major loss for state Republicans who have slowly witnessed a Democratic takeover of Colorado politics.<\/p>\n

That fear was evident during Saturday\u2019s dinner, as speakers like Heidi Ganahl, who lost to Democratic Gov. Jared Polis in the 2022 election, highlighted how far behind Republicans in the state were when it came to fundraising.<\/p>\n

\"Heidi
Heidi Ganahl, who lost to Democratic Gov. Jared Polis in the 2022 election, speaks Saturday during the Montezuma County Lincoln Day Dinner at the Ute Mountain Casino Hotel in Towaoc. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)<\/span>Jerry McBride<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

\u201cWe were outspent in the governor\u2019s race, just the governor\u2019s race, $33 million to $3 million. You can\u2019t win elections with that kind of gap,\u201d Ganahl told attendees. But, \u201cwe are Colorado, we are all about comebacks. I\u2019m all about comebacks. America is all about comebacks. This game is not over. It\u2019s not over in Colorado.\u201d<\/p>\n

A call for \u2018integrity\u2019<\/div>\n

How much Boebert\u2019s scandal will influence voters remains to be seen, but her Republican opponents are already pouncing.<\/p>\n

In his speech on Saturday, primary challenger Jeff Hurd, an attorney from Grand Junction who has earned the endorsement of former Gov. Bill Owens and other prominent Colorado Republicans, made several mentions of the need for \u201cintegrity\u201d among elected officials.<\/p>\n

\"Grand
Grand Junction lawyer Jeff Hurd, who is running against Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., in Colorado\u2019s 3rd Congressional District, talks with Allan Thayer, as his daughter Gabriella Hurd, 12, listens Saturday in Towaoc. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)<\/span>Jerry McBride<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

\u201cThis seat deserves somebody with integrity, to act consistently throughout their life,\u201d Hurd said. \u201cWhat you see is what you get with me. I\u2019m the same guy standing in front of you now that I am in public and other places, that I am in private at home, that I am at work, and that I am at church.\u201d<\/p>\n

When asked whether Boebert\u2019s scandal would impact her ability to win in the general election next year, Hurd said he would let the voters \u201cdecide that for themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut it\u2019s important that we have a representative whose life matches what they say they are doing \u2026 and that it reflects well on our district. Because ultimately, the actions that a representative takes reflect on the seat and the district,\u201d he told The Journal<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Bringing national politics to Montezuma County<\/div>\n

Apart from the apology, Boebert touted her work in ousting former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and the appointment of Johnson in his place, whom she called an \u201camazing man.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe way everything unfolded in Washington D.C. over the past few weeks resulted in a better outcome than any of us could have ever imagined,\u201d said Boebert. \u201cApparently, I\u2019m a leadership shill nowadays.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Rep.
Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., delivers her speech Saturday in Towaoc during the Montezuma County Lincoln Day Dinner at the Ute Mountain Casino Hotel. The posters behind her represent two guns that were auctioned. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)<\/span>Jerry McBride<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Boebert claimed partial credit for helping spur Johnson\u2019s campaign for the powerful position. Earlier this month, as the House was preparing to recess yet again without a speaker, Boebert yelled out: \u201cI nominate Mike Johnson for speaker.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMike Johnson sent me a message that night. He said: \u2018Thank you so much for your support. Some other people have approached me since you stood up and said something. I prayed about it. I think I\u2019m gonna run for speaker,\u2019\u201d said Boebert. \u201cThe next week, without any opposition, we elected Speaker Mike Johnson.\u201d<\/p>\n

But while Boebert worked to sell her national work to local voters, both primary challengers sought to make her recent antics a liability.<\/p>\n

Boebert \u201chas got her personality,\u201d said Russ Andrews, a financial adviser from the Roaring Fork Valley who is also running against Boebert for the GOP nomination in 3rd District. \u201cFor me, it\u2019s about policies and how those policies help people.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Russ
Russ Andrews, a financial adviser from the Roaring Fork Valley, is running against Rep. Lauren Boebert. He also spoke Saturday during the Montezuma County Lincoln Day Dinner at the Ute Mountain Casino Hotel. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)<\/span>Jerry McBride<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Still, as one of Congress\u2019 most prolific members, Boebert\u2019s brand of conservatism and her speech are still winning over area voters.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need change, we need people that are for the country,\u201d said Linda Randolph, 73, a Republican voter and a resident of Montezuma County for more than 70 years.<\/p>\n

That change, however, doesn\u2019t extend to Boebert\u2019s seat. When asked whether they planned to support the congresswoman again, both Randolph and her husband, Tuffy Randolph, 75, gave a resounding \u201cYep.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Lenetta
Lenetta Shull, acting chair of the Montezuma County Central Committee, speaks during the Montezuma County Lincoln Day Dinner at the Ute Mountain Casino Hotel on Saturday. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)<\/span>Jerry McBride<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Campaign
Campaign items for Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)<\/span>Jerry McBride<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"The
The Montezuma County Lincoln Day Dinner at the Ute Mountain Casino Hotel on Saturday. Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald<\/span>Jerry McBride<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Dorothy
Dorothy Porter hugs Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., during the Montezuma County Lincoln Day Dinner Saturday at the Ute Mountain Casino Hotel. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)<\/span>Jerry McBride<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Boebert apologizes again for the September incident, but her Republican rivals aren\u2019t ready to let her off the hook <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":30003,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[266,28,308,826,265,367],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-30915","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-election","tag-headlines","tag-local-elections","tag-political-campaigns","tag-politics","tag-u-s-rep-lauren-boebert"],"acf":[],"author_name":"dh_admin","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30915","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30915"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30915\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":81250,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30915\/revisions\/81250"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/30003"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30915"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30915"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30915"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=30915"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}